KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 8 (Bernama) -- Bursa Malaysia closed almost flat on Tuesday as buying interest rotated away from index heavyweights towards smaller-cap construction stocks, with sentiment affected by geopolitical uncertainty, said an analyst. At 5 pm, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) eased 0.39 of a point to 1,714.40 from Monday’s close of 1,714.79. The benchmark index opened 1.65 points lower at 1,713.14 and moved between 1,710.44 and 1,714.50 throughout the trading session. The broader market was almost evenly balanced, with decliners leading gainers 548 to 546, while 598 counters were unchanged, 1,107 were untraded and 25 were suspended. Turnover expanded to 4.13 billion units valued at RM3.14 billion from 3.60 billion units valued at RM2.45 billion on Monday.
Scott Bessent , a top economic adviser to Donald Trump and CEO of Key Square Group, has criticized the Federal Reserve's decision to cut interest rates by half a percentage point in September , calling it a move that could undermine the integrity of the institution so close to the 2024 presidential election. He expressed concerns about the optics of the jumbo rate cut , arguing that the Fed could have waited until after the election to make such a significant adjustment. Fed Chair Jerome Powell and other officials justified the rate cut as necessary to support a labor market that has cooled in 2024, with another half-point cut projected before the year ends. However, Bessent believes the timing of the cut raises questions, given the proximity to the election, adding that waiting two months wouldn’t have significantly impacted the economy but would have safeguarded the Fed’s reputation. Despite repeated assurances from Powell and other policymakers that political considerations ...